Diploma in Community Interpreting

Course overview

The Centre for Translation and Interpretation offers a Diploma in Community Interpreting. This is a professional course designed to train Community Interpreters to international standards so they can respond to the rising market in Africa, especially since the number of migrants requiring multicultural interaction has increased drastically in recent
years.

This Centre is the only one of its kind in East and Central Africa.

University of Nairobi (UoN) in collaboration with partners launched interpreting and translation training at Masters Level in November 2010. In 2019 a Doctoral programme was added and NOW the University launches the Diploma in Community Interpreting. These produce highly qualified language professionals equipped to take the competitive language examinations of the UN and to compete for jobs in the local setting and the international market on equal footing with those trained in Europe

The University of Nairobi – Centre for Translation and Interpretation offers a Diploma in Community Interpreting. This is a professional course designed to train Community Interpreters to international standards so they can respond to the rising market in Africa, especially since the number of migrants requiring multicultural interaction has increased drastically in recent years.

This Ordinary Diploma programme is designed to equip learners with the theoretical and practical skills necessary to become professional Community Interpreters. Apart from equipping them with the knowledge and understanding of the discipline of interpretation, the programme also has a strong practical orientation designed for candidates with awareness and understanding of multicultural environments who wish to develop professional skills for embracing this new career. This professional course is designed to train Community Interpreters to international standards for them to respond to the rising market in Africa where the number of migrants and other multicultural interaction has increased drastically in recent years. Apart from the term Community Interpreters, other, overlapping terms that are in use globally are: public service interpreting, dialogue interpreting, cultural mediation or ad hoc interpreting.

The specific aims of the Diploma in Community Interpreting are to:

• Equip students with skills in the discipline of interpretation and to enable them to practice these skills and engage in basic research in interpretation
• Equip students with the skills specific to Community Interpreting and its professionalization in Africa in general, and in East Africa in particular.

Train students with critical skills to: 

• Use interpretation skills to cross-fertilize between research, training, and practice where each aspect informs the other;
• Effectively enable learners to interpret for national and regional authorities when attending to immigrants and/or refugees who do not speak or understand the national language(s) sufficiently well, to screen their status as potential asylum seekers or to allow them to have access to public services such as health care;
• Apply interpretation theories to research data and make credible observations in different fields of specialization and contexts in interpretation.

Fees and funding

Fees are in Kenya shillings

Career opportunities

Upon completion of the Diploma in Community Interpreting graduates can pursue careers as Community Interpreters. These may include work as staff interpreters, freelance interpreters, court interpreters and other individuals interested in acquiring or furthering their academic or career objectives in interpreting.

Entry requirements

Academic requirement

Any one of the following:

• KCSE mean Grade C- (minus) with C plain in English or Kiswahili
• KCSE mean grade C- (minus) and a certificate in any field from a recognized post-secondary institution
• KCE Division III and a certificate in any field from a recognized post-secondary institution
• KACE 1 principal pass
• A university degree in any field from a recognized institution
• Equivalents of the above qualifications

Language requirement

Competence in English, one other UN or an African language, offered at the Centre for Translation and Interpretation, will be confirmed through an aptitude test administered online.

Teaching and learning

• Minimum number of 9 units
• Research project

Learning environment

The Diploma Programme is offered Online and also in blended mode:

Open, Distance and e-Learning

The Open, Distance and e-Learning (ODeL) programme will include Multi-media approaches in distance education, E-learning materials which will be provided on the Online LMS for synchronous learning and also made available as back-up for asynchronous learning.

A robust Learner Management System (LMS) and other e-learning applications downloadable on various electronic devices will be employed.

Face to Face and Blended modes

The methods of instruction shall be interactive and shall consist of lectures, class presentations, seminars, tutorials, case studies, practical interpretation sessions, simulations, student-teacher consultations.

Next steps / Application process

Step 1 – Visit university website

Visit the application website http://application.uonbi.ac.ke

Step 2 – User account

Registration and creation of user account

Step 3 – Personal details

Profile management, key in personal details

Step 4 – Testimonials

Uploading of certified testimonials

Step 5 – Programme selection

Programme selection, select and apply for Diploma in Community Interpreting. You will be issued with a REFERENCE NUMBER and directed to pay the prescribed application fee. Always quote the reference number.

Step 6 – Payment of Application Fees

Pay the application fees using:

• Credit/Debit card
• Mpesa paybill
• Direct Cash deposit to KCB Branch University
  Way. Account Name-University of Nairobi
  (CESSP). Account number: 1177976374

INQUIRIES

For further inquiries, please contact:

Director for Research
Centre for Translation & Interpretation
Email: info-cti@uonbi.ac.ke
Tel: 0204913223

For applicants from Kakuma, Kalobeyei & Dadaab

YES (Youth Education & Sports)
info@educationandsports.org
Tel: +254 711 914998 (Aimé)
or visit the YES Learning Hub at Liz Ahua (Kakuma 3)